All women of the church and friends are invited to a Lenten Bible Study, “She Shed”.
The Study will be held every other Wednesday evenings during Lent.
We had are first meeting on February 24, 2026 and had a great turn out and a wonderful gathering. We will continue to meet on March 11, and March 25. We will gather at 6 pm in the Library for appetizers, beverages, and fellowship. This will be followed by a Bible Study lesson, and an independent, easy-to-complete art project led by our own Sara Wamsat.
The Study will follow the book, A Time to Grow, written by Kara Eidson. The Christian Education fund is purchasing the books which are available in the church office. If you are interested in joining us for this Lenten Bible Study, or if you have questions, contact Karen Severson at karenseverson15@gmail.com or Mary McArdle at marymac1201@aol.com.
So much for the beautiful spring weather, though the sun is shining.
There are lots of ways to get or stay involved at Peace.
The She Shed Bible study is kicking off. It’s a Lenten Bible study, but it’s a start to a new habit.
The Men’s group will be starting up again on St. Patrick’s Day at 5:30 p.m.
Presbyterian Women meet once a month, and our retirees have a regular luncheon as well.
Church is not just about that one hour on Sunday, it’s about a loving community. However, that community does not exist without you.
Pastor in Action
So in the past week I have attended a number of meetings.
I participated in the pre Commission of Care meeting, and then helped moderate the CoC meeting itself last night. On Saturday, I attended a Pilgrimage team meeting, and then last night I participated in the Pilgrimage council meeting.
Last week we kicked off Lent with our Ash Wednesday service. (We had 15 in attendance.)
In addition to all this, there was worship preparation, and some reading.
We have had visits scheduled, but because people have been feeling down, they have been rescheduled.
Message
I was in a meeting yesterday, and the check-in question was, how do we feel about snow. The answers were quite varied. A couple of people like skiing. One was big into cross country skiing. Another person enjoy snow blowing, and one lady actually likes shoveling snow. As for me, I like snow just fine, when I’m under a blanket, with Earl Gray tea, a book, and my dog. Snow is pretty, but it is also messy when it gets tracked into my house, and it’s cold.
Now, I could easily make this message about how people view things differently, and it would be a good message. We all see the world through different lenses. Some like it hot, while others like the cold. However, that’s not today’s message.
I attend, as a participant, several committees and councils. One of the things I have noticed is that at each one, someone asks an off the wall question which is followed by a check-in. We want to know how people are doing. I’m not talking about he standard Sunday question of, “Hi, how are you?” Which is followed by the customary, “fine.” I’m talking about a real question looking for real honest answers.
Sitting in my pastor’s chair and looking at the congregation, I can tell you everyone has a struggle. Not most, not some, but everyone.
We all need that someone we can talk to, unconditionally. We need to be able to share our pains, and our joys. People aren’t always looking for solutions. Heck, many times they know the answers, and some of those answers are difficult. What they need is a shoulder. Someone who will listen without judging, support without expectations, and someone who will just be a friend.
The sad fact is, we’ve been raised to stand on our own two feet; to pull ourselves up. We’ve been told not to air our “dirty laundry,” and that asking for help is being weak. (Honestly, I think this is a huge lie. Asking for help takes courage.) The real fact is, we all need a hand sometimes. We are communal creatures. We live in communities. Family community. Church community. Neighborhood community. Workout community. And many, many more.
We have a phrase in Tae Kwon Do that makes sense. Lift as you climb. As we work to improve ourselves, we also work to help those around us, to make them better. Here’s another way of looking at it, in my opinion. I climb as I lift. When I help someone, in whatever way that might be, I am also helping myself.
We are, and have always been, better together. Since the earliest days, humanity has worked in small communities to survive. They hunted together. The gathered together. They ate together, and shared the fire. That’s how we got here today, but supporting each other.
Friends, I want to encourage you to do two things. First off, when I ask you how you’re doing, tell me. I want to know the truth. While you’re at it, make sure you have that friend or two that you can lean on. Secondly, be that friend. When you ask someone how they are doing, don’t let them get off with “fine.” No, they are not. Listen to them. Listen to their words, their tone, their body language. If they need to cry, give them your shoulder. If they need to laugh, laugh out loud. Be that friend that you would want.
Know this, I count you all as friends, and I thank God that each of you is in my life.
Please join us for our Second Annual Trunk or Treat on Saturday, October 25, 2025 from 5 – 7PM
Free Hot Dogs will be available! Remember that the entrance from 204th Street is closed for Construction. Enter though Farnham Drive. Hope to see you there!
📍 Peace Presbyterian Church 333 S. 204th St., Elkhorn, NE 📅 Sunday, September 14, 2025 ⏰ 7:00 pm 🎟️ No admission — free will offering
With the recording of his 14th album, Where the Earth Makes No Sound, Mitch McVicker has taken the road less traveled while also deciding to go down a path he had previously chosen years ago.
McVicker calls the album Where the Earth Makes No Sound because he believes God’s involvement in our lives surrounds us from every angle—infinite and boundless. When sound is not present, some people find refuge in the silence. At the same time, others long for the silence to be broken.
“God is love. God is involvement. For us to think that our life situation and our performance have a bearing on who God is seems arrogant and ridiculous. We yearn, we rest. We long, we take refuge. God is the source of everything. We are talking about the God of the universe. God isn’t around just sometimes in certain situations. It’s always. God isn’t contained by our boundaries.” – Mitch McVicker
The album explores themes of refuge and longing.
Musical Journey
Mitch began his vocational music career with the late, great Rich Mullins. The two were roommates, writing songs and performing together.
Rich Mullins and Mitch McVicker perform “Awesome God” together
Shortly after a tragic car wreck killed Rich Mullins and left McVicker badly injured, the song they had penned together, My Deliverer – Rich Mullins, was honored with the GMA Dove Award for Song of the Year. At the very same time, Mitch was going through a lengthy and difficult recovery from a coma-causing brain injury, collapsed lungs, broken bones, and nerve damage.
Out of that season of grief and struggle, McVicker pressed forward. Deeply influenced by his time with Rich Mullins in both music and thought, he continued his journey with a distinct voice and style of his own.
McVicker’s solo career has spanned nearly 2,500 concerts across 49 states and 13 countries. He has recorded 13 full-length albums, 2 EPs, 9 official music videos, and 2 live concert DVDs.
Returning to His Roots
McVicker seems determined to make sure his musical journey continues to grow. In creating Where the Earth Makes No Sound, he returned to a recording situation he had previously thrived in and loved — Greenjeans Studios.
“A number of years ago, I recorded several albums at Greenjeans Studios,” McVicker recalls. “Over the last few years, I decided to look into other recording situations and see what else was out there. And, while I learned and grew a lot from those experiences, I discovered that there is no better place for me to record than Greenjeans.”
So McVicker went back.
“I wanted to apply my growth to the rock-solidness and high-levelness of Greenjeans. I’m doing something completely new AND something I’ve done before.”
In the studio, Mitch set out to capture the same spirit that fills his live concerts. True to his style, he built unique percussion tracks by looping sounds from junk, household items, and children’s toys.
“With my last couple of albums, I had been dabbling in recording perc loops the way I create them in concert…and not using drums,” McVicker explains. “But never, ever has it come together like it has on this new album.”
Concert Style & 2025 Tour
McVicker’s concert is a little bit Mark Twain meets MacGyver. His quirky and inventive approach includes:
Insightful song lyrics
Unconventional instruments
Profound storytelling infused with humor
His concerts connect the everyday with the otherworldly.
In 2025, McVicker will once again embark on a full concert tour in support of Where the Earth Makes No Sound.
“I hope the concerts I do will raise spirits and direct attention toward the good,” he says. “These songs have been born out of life experience and deal with questions, wonderings, conflicts, struggles, and the love that engulfs all things. My longing and my refuge are expressed in these songs almost simultaneously.”
Once again, McVicker has turned to his journaling as the basis for his songwriting.
“These songs come out of what I’ve gathered and stumbled into,” he explains. “I hope the songs connect with people in a simple way…while also pointing us beyond ourselves to a God who is involved in our lives in ways that are often overlooked, undetected, and taken for granted.”
Simple but Profound Theology
McVicker’s theology is daringly simple: God’s love washes over and through us regardless of us and our circumstances.
“Instead of mindlessly thinking we have some control over God’s involvement in us and with us, let’s accept the truth that God IS,” McVicker says.
“God is everywhere…in our light and dark. God is in our ugly and beautiful. In our simple and complex. In our hairy and shorn.”
A Little Bit About Mitch (In His Own Words)
“I am a traveling, concert-giving, and recording musician. It is my vocation.”
Early Years & Rich Mullins
“I started out by traveling, writing songs, doing concerts, and being roommates with the late, great Rich Mullins (renowned composer of Awesome God and many others). I was in the car wreck that killed Rich. My recovery was touch-and-go and very extensive…lasting years. This was a significant event in my life and a big way that I have come to experience God’s activity in my life. I try to communicate this in the concerts I am now able to do.”
Songwriting & Career
“Rich and I wrote a song together, My Deliverer, that won a Dove Award for Song of the Year. Since recovering from the accident, I have done nearly 2,500 concerts, been to 49 states and 13 countries, and recorded 12 full-length albums, 2 EPs, and 2 live concert DVDs. My newest album, Where the Earth Makes No Sound, was released in 2024.”
Concerts & Purpose
“My goal is to do concerts that point people beyond themselves. I play in churches, theaters, colleges, prisons, bars, and coffeehouses. I tend to blab a lot in concert…I share my faith experiences and how we are all trying to respond to God’s ever-present and always-infusing grace. It is my attempt to communicate and emphasize God’s activity in all of our lives…through the practical, overlooked, and taken for granted. With my concert tours, I try to do something that is artful and good. I play about 100 concerts a year.”
Instruments & Style
“I play an acoustic guitar, nylon string guitar, ukulele, banjo, electric guitar, and cajón (box drum). I make percussion loops from junk, various household items, and children’s toys, and then play songs to those percussion loops. Everything is set up on a table next to me. The ‘stage’ looks kind of like a garage sale.”
✨ We are thrilled to welcome Mitch McVicker to Peace Presbyterian Church! Don’t miss this opportunity to experience his music, his story, and his ministry in person. Please join us for an unforgettable evening of worship and song.
